Time to consider two refs for hurling

I enjoyed both All-Ireland final games even though they were two entirely different contests.

The drawn one was an exhibition of scoring while on Saturday we saw a masterclass in hooking, blocking and tackling, particularly from Kilkenny.

The sportsmanship of the teams has to be complimented.

The replay was always going to have an edge but it never boiled over. Having said that, you could see what type of match we were going to get from the throw-in when 20 players crowded around the middle third.

Having watched the game again yesterday, I can say Brian Gavin managed better than some might think. In the 12th minute, he called Cathal Barrett for catching the ball three times. Three minutes later, Lar Corbett could have been awarded a free for a push by Paul Murphy although Gavin did see through John Power’s attempt to buy a free shortly after.

James Barry, like Corbett, was unfortunate not to have won a free for a foul by Colin Fennelly just before he himself was deemed to have fouled the Kilkenny forward.

The decision to disallow Eoin Murphy’s goal in the 26th minute was correct as the rectangle had been entered prior to the free entering it. In the 32nd minute, Kieran Joyce was rightly whistled for charging as was Pádraic Maher correctly blown up for picking up the ball in the 37th minute.

Looking at Tipperary’s penalty again, it remains a debatable judgment on Gavin’s part and whether Joyce actually fouled Patrick Maher. All the same, Tipperary were sufficiently put off by the “reward” of it and Seamus Callanan took a point.

In the 73rd minute, Richie Power fouled Brendan Maher but no free was awarded to Tipperary. But it must be said Gavin allowed the right amount of injury time with those three minutes.

Just a couple of general points taking Saturday’s game in mind. First, referees have been criticised for throwing in/up the ball far too often. On Saturday, Gavin threw in the ball six times, but he was correct to do so.

As good as the surface was, the bunching warranted throw ins for how else could he have solved the unusual incident in the 18th minute when both Barry and TJ Reid caught the ball?

Secondly, the time has come for the GAA to seriously consider adopting two referees in inter-county hurling. Not even Usain Bolt could keep up with the speed of play at the highest level! Gavin and his colleagues cope well but an extra pair of legs never mind eyes would go a long way to improving the officiating of the game.